It has been reported in the literature that the original free-spinning spinner was made in the 1980s. However, revolving wheel disc covers were previously reported in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,158,946 and 3,219,391. Examples of other wheel spinners have been disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,554,370; 6,655,061; 6,945,609; 7,014,273; 7,100,995; 7,121,631 and 7,182,408. None of these patents each or suggest the novel wheel spinner taught and claimed herein.
Wheel spinners have been used on vehicles such as automobiles, SUV's, motorcycles and trucks to provide a novel visual effect of a part spinning at different speeds than the wheel and to continue to spin when the vehicle has stopped.
The development of wheel spinners has primarily focused on a spinner device attached to a vehicle wheel (rim) that rotates at a different speed than the wheel and continues to rotate when the vehicle stops. Most of these spinners have one common feature; they attach to the center of the rim and rotate essentially within the area of the rim itself The spinner portion is usually a non-enclosed spinning blade or spokes that can cause a danger to anyone, especially small children, who may place his or her finger into the wheel while it is still spinning. Also the spinners are limited to spinning spokes or blades with no ability to show motion that is created by color changes. Finally the spinning elements are open to the environment and thus, salt ice, packed snow and the like can affect the performance of the spinner. Lastly the spinner is located in the center of the wheel and does not hide at least a portion of the tire. An object of the present invention is to provide a novel aesthetic effect through the use of a unique spinner device and color changes. Another object is to improve upon the negative features of prior spinners.